The present invention involves the use of an aqueous acidic composition as the principal, or core, component of a number of compositions including, but not limited to, metal cleaners, anti-oxidants and de-greasers, cleaners for glass, porcelain and other ceramics, metal plating baths, sterilants and bacteriostatic agents for liquids including water treatment, cosmetics, soaps and detergents, topical antiseptics, eye and ear drops, and pharmaceutical agents, and the use of those compositions. More particularly, the present invention relates to an improved, four acid core component and its formulation with other ingredients and use for these various purposes.
Although now well known in the patent literature, there is still much to be clarified about the manner in which low pH, non-toxic aqueous compositions function to achieve their intended result without causing the caustic burns and other damage caused by strong acids. So far as is known, the first disclosure of such compositions in the patent literature is set out in U.S. Pat. No. 4,459,202 (Garcia), which utilized an acidic solvent composition including two strong and two weak acids for recovering bituminous products from tar sands. The specification of that patent notes that the composition is non-corrosive and not a health hazard. Shortly after the issuance of that patent, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,477,364 and 4,483,887 (again, Garcia was the inventor) issued describing the use of that same four acid composition as a component of a glass cleaner and metal plating substrate, respectively, each of which was described as being substantially non-toxic and inert to the human skin.
Since those 1984 patents, several other patents have issued describing the use of this four acid composition as a core component in other compositions, including U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,675,120 (Martucci), 4,970,014 (Garcia), 4,970,015 (Garcia) and 5,019,288 (Garcia) for well acidizing, tertiary oil recovery, removing rust from metal, cleaning aluminum, radiator cleaning, boiler and heat exchanger cleaning, and copper cleaning. Canadian (No. 1,231,053 (Garcia)) and Mexican (No. 158,149 (Garcia)), also issued (in 1988 and 1989, respectively) which are directed to the four acid composition.
To the extent that the function of this four acid core component is understood, that function is described in those issued patents, each of which is incorporated herein in their entireties by this specific reference thereto. Briefly, the combination of first and second strong acids with third and fourth, weaker acids has the effect of forcing the weaker acids to act as conjugate bases for the strong acids to accept (in the terminology of the Bronsted-Lowry theory for describing the behavior of acids and bases in aqueous solution) hydrogen ions (actually hydronium ions H.sub.3 O.sup.+ when in aqueous solution) from the strong acids. In this manner, acid solutions with extremely low pH values and high amounts of free hydrogen ions are made. These solutions are non-corrosive to metal, innocuous to skin and capable of providing enormous amounts of hydrogen ions that, when combined with other acids, provide an excellent environment for effective performance as bacteriastats and cleaning, disinfecting and preparation of all kinds of surfaces by creating a protective mantle that does not allow any type of micro-organism to live in such a low pH environment.
Despite the rather remarkable behavior of this four acid core component disclosed in the above-incorporated patents in water and the many uses for which it is capable of being adapted, it is characterized by several shortcomings when used in certain applications. For instance, in studies conducted with a disinfectant formulated from the four component composition for topical application to the skin, the disinfectant caused a reddening of the skin and a burning sensation at concentrations high enough to insure adequate disinfection. Likewise, when formulated into plating and cleaning solutions and the like such as are contemplated by the above-incorporated patents, the result is a plating or cleaning solution which, when it contacts the skin, has a similar result such that it is desirable to re-formulate these solutions in a manner which does not decrease their efficacy but which is safer for the person(s) using the solution to handle.
It is, therefore, a primary object of this invention to provide a core composition capable of being formulated into a variety of different solutions for use in water treatment; cleaning; cleaning, plating, and/or re-finishing metals; disinfecting; pharmaceuticals; and cosmetics.
It is another object of the present invention to provide methods for the use of the different solutions formulated with the core composition of the present invention.
These, and other, objects of the present invention will be made clear by the following description of the presently preferred embodiments thereof.